We disliked

Couple that with the facts that the clasp is hard to fasten and the battery life is abysmal, and you've got a gadget built for early adopters and very few other people.

The app list needs to grow so that its usefulness isn't so limited. By the time that happens, we may have a cheaper or even second round of Google-powered smartwatches from Samsung and LG.

It fits slightly better than the boxy LG G Watch

Final verdict

Android Wear early adopters should go with the Samsung Gear Live over the less elegant LG G Watch, but know in advance that it's far from perfect. Everyone else should wait for the Moto 360 or LG G Watch R.

The hardware has its hiccups with straps that are annoying to clasp together and, to make matters worse, you'll be taking the watch on and off a lot because of its terrible one-day battery life.

There's also the fact that the display and most of the internals haven't changed since Samsung introduced the Galaxy Gear last year. It's still toeing the line.

Android Wear, while in its infancy, takes Samsung's hit-and-mostly-miss smartwatch experiences and gives it some practically. Without it, Gear Live would be the same smartwatch we got ten months ago.